Modular Camper: SylvanSport VAST Made for Families With Gear

A new kind of camper is coming to town. Soon, you’ll be able to haul gear, sleep, and cook dinner — indoors or out — in the modular basecamp wonder that is the SylvanSport VAST.

Pull-behind campers get a gear-oriented upgrade this summer. We previewed the SylvanSport VAST last month in Salt Lake City, where it won an innovation award at the RV Experience (RVX) show.

This article breaks the VAST down for anyone in the market for what may be an ultimate gear junkie basecamp camper. The company calls it “the RV reimagined.”

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SylvanSport VAST Camper

The SylanSport VAST is the kind of camper designed for people who prefer to camp outdoors but may want a cushier experience. Unlike your typical RV, the VAST is a place where you sleep, maybe eat a meal during rain, and have as a home base hub. But the design lends itself to those who will spend most of their camping time away from the camper. It nicely bridges the gap between luxury RVs and a camp tent on the ground.

I got inside the VAST at the trade show and was given a full tour by the founder of the company. Its boxy interior is equipped to the hilt with compartments, doors, windows, moveable beds, storage, a bathroom, and a kitchen unit that moves to reveal a shower underneath (more on that below).

SylvanSport unveiled its first unit, the popular GO camper, more than a decade ago. The VAST is a full reboot, built off a box-trailer template and assembled with gear hauling in mind.

Kayaks can attach on the side with a unique rack. In the back, a door opens as a mini “garage” to stow bikes.

A “storage pod” on the front offers 18 cubic feet of additional storage in a waterproof, lockable space.

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Indoor-Outdoor Kitchen

As we noted in the RVX article, the SylvanSport VAST’s indoor-outdoor kitchen is likely the most innovative part of the design. It slides in and out on a non-motorized rail system.

You can cook and prep food inside if it’s rainy or cold. On a nice day, the entire kitchen slides down and out, offering the same two-burner stove, sink, and refrigerator outside.

SylvanSport calls the indoor/outdoor kitchen a first for the RV industry. “The all-season kitchen is fully functional at an optimal cooking height for the indoor or outdoor gourmet,” the brand notes.

We tested it out at the trade show. The system is slick, with the whole modular kitchen easily moving out on smooth tracks. A table folds down for more food-prep space, making the kitchen a bona fide place to cook a camp feast.

Inside, once the kitchen is moved on the tracks, you can access a residential-size shower in its place.

Stephen Regenold is Founder of GearJunkie, which he launched as a nationally-syndicated newspaper column in 2002. As a journalist and writer, Regenold has covered the outdoors industry for two decades, including as a correspondent for the New York Times. A father of five, Regenold and his wife live in Minneapolis.